Order of the Demigods
by Supernerdette
Summary: Harry is in danger with Voldemort rising. Dumbledore asks a certain centaur for advice, and Chiron willingly sends Nico to Hogwarts to protect him. Snape doesn't like Nico at all. Sort of Golden Trio bashing.
1. Chapter 1

**Order of the Demigods Chapter 1.**

**So, yeah, this is my new Harry Potter/PJO xover. I read a couple and wanted to make my own. Enjoy. No slash (probably). I think this is a semi-AU, because I'm not including the DA, but I think I will include Grimmauld Place. Set after TLO and in OoTP. Nico-centric. Nico is 13/14, and the golden Trio are 15. **

The war with the Titans was over, and although it had taken many lives, there was an odd kind of peace drifting over Camp Half-Blood. The campers were happy, the counsellors were happy, Chiron was happy, and even Mr D wasn't as grumpy as usual. Only the son of Hades broke the pattern.

Nico sat in the nice new Cabin 13. He sat on his bed, the Mythomagic Hades figurine in his hands. He was angry. Yes, the war was over, and the minor gods had recognition, all thanks to _Percy_. All the new campers wanted his autograph, wanted _him_ to teach the sword-fighting lessons, wanted _him_ to sit by them at mealtimes.

_Nico_ was good at sword-fighting too. _Nico _was great at using his death-powers, and without _Nico_'s plan and help in the war, they wouldn't've had a prayer of winning. But no, it was all _Percy_ this, and _Percy_ that, never Nico or anyone else. And so, Nico was in a foul mood.

At this moment, Chiron received an Iris-message from a very important friend. A certain Albus Dumbledore needed his help in protecting a certain student from a messy and painful death. But of course, the centaur couldn't go. He had his camp to attend to, and a life to live. Chiron's first thought was to send Nico, because although the boy was trying very hard not to show it, he had noticed his anxiety and desire to prove himself. So, he trotted on down to the Hades cabin.

When he arrived at Cabin 13, Chiron hesitated to knock the door. He knew Nico was in there, but didn't want to disturb him. His dilemma was solved; however, as the boy himself opened the door and nearly crashed into him. Putting his hands on the demigod's shoulders to steady him, he spoke.

"Nico, I have a…mission I think you would like to go on." He said. Nico stared at him questioningly. "It's in the UK, Scotland to be precise." Nico had always wanted to go to England/Scotland, so he was tempted by this.

"What does it involve?" He asked. Chiron then explained about a type of people descended from those blessed by Hecate, wizard and witches, and their current problems. Nico accepted this very well, not at all fazed by the fact that wizards and witches existed in the modern world.

"All due respect, Chiron, but…why pick me? I'm sure _Percy _or Annabeth or Thalia would be happy to do it…" He stated in a monotone voice.

Chiron glanced at him apologetically. "I think Percy and Annabeth are a bit preoccupied at the moment, and Thalia has her Hunting duties to sustain."

"Ok. When do I set off, and how do I get there?"

"You're flying," Nico paled dramatically, "Shadow traveling across continents is probably unhealthy to be attempting. And I suggest you pack now, because you set off from the airport at 9. And don't worry, I had a word with your uncle, he won't blast you out of the sky."

**(A.N I am not really bothering to think about which airports he's going from/to, because it doesn't really matter.)**

Nico mumbled something incoherently and slouched off to pack his things.

When they (Chiron, Nico, and Argus) reached the airport at 8.30pm, Nico's plane was already there. It was huge, and had a big yellow line with white text on it that read 'Air Olympus.' Nico snorted at the name. His uncle was very sarcastic.

He boarded the plane, said goodbye to Chiron, and buckled up for the _very _turbulent flight that followed. During the flight, he polished his sword, checked he had at least two knives in each of the jackets he'd packed, slept for about two hours, and listened to music on his black Mp3 player. When the plane finally landed in an abandoned airfield somewhere, he was met by a short fellow with a top hat which threatened to fall off. When this guy saw Nico, he squeaked and hurried forward to introduce himself.

"Dedalus Diggle," He said, wringing Nico's hand with his own.

"Nico," He replied, strangely confident with his identity. Diggle nodded at him and winked, making Nico confused.

"Dumbledore told me all about your…unique parentage." He explained as they walked out of the field, "I must say, I was shocked at first, but…" Nico found a strange sense of comfort in the old (ish) man's chattering voice. They were now at the end of a lane that led to the field.

"Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you, but I'm afraid I have to go now. Dumbledore said you had a different way to travel…"

"Shadow travel," Nico prompted him.

"Yes, that. You need to catch the Hogwarts Express from platform nine and three-quarters, tomorrow at 2pm. It's at King's Cross station." Nico looked on, still confused. "It's in London." And with that, the man turned on the spot and was gone.

Nico took in his surroundings. It was 3am, British time. It was dark, and an owl hooted mournfully atop a nearby oak tree. Suddenly, he saw a barn he was sure had not been there when he'd got out of the plane. It had smashed windows, and was made of a dark brown wood that was slightly weathered. Approaching it, he could see a note pinned to the peeling paint on the red door. It read:

_Mr Nico,_

_I heard you were flying in tonight and had this accommodation prepared. It's better than it looks, the undetectable extension charm worked a treat. _

_Albus Dumbledore_.

Nico snorted. This barn was accommodation? It barely looked fit for animals to live in. Doubtfully, he pushed the door open. He gasped. Inside the barn was a midnight black four-poster bed with silk hangings. The walls were also black, with silver flickering torches mounted to them on brackets, and there was an en-suite bathroom attached. There was a sofa (black, duh,) and a plasma screen TV. He couldn't figure out how this ensemble fitted inside a barn, but he was so tired he didn't really care. Plonking down his suitcase, he undressed **(A.N not fully you sick people!)** and slumped onto the bed. Reaching for the bedside light, he saw a scabbard on the wall for his sword and a small box for it in ring form. This Dumbledore thought of everything, Nico thought as he fell asleep.

In the morning, Nico washed and dressed in his usual all-black attire, before sitting on the sofa and watching TV for a while. There was nothing good on, so he just channel-surfed. He spotted a mini-fridge in the corner and found a sandwich to eat.

Before long, it was 2 o'clock in the afternoon. He picked up his suitcase and, thinking hard of his destination,_ Platform 9 ¾, King's Cross station_, he leant back and tumbled through the darkness. He loved shadow traveling; it was creepy, dark, and scared the heck out of most people.

Unfortunately, he landed right in the path of a metal trolley with a snowy owl and several suitcases on it. _Crash!_

"I'm _so_ sorry," He heard a female voice say. He looked up and saw a bushy-haired fifteen-year old girl next to a freckly ginger boy and a messy-haired guy with a scar and glasses. He recognised the boy as Harry Potter, the person he was supposed to protect.

"I'm sorry," She repeated, "I just didn't see you… appear." He picked himself up off the floor and grabbed his suitcase.

"It's okay." He said, before turning to the others. "I'm in the right place, right? This _is_ platform nine and three-quarters, isn't it?"

The ginger guy gaped at him; he was obviously shocked by the shadow-traveling. Harry looked unfazed, as though he was used to seeing extraordinary things every day.

"Yep," He said. Nico sighed in relief.

"I'm Hermione Granger, and that's Ron Weasley and, well, you know who _he _is." The girl said, pointing to Harry, who blushed and frowned.

"I'm Nico," He said. Hermione looked at him as if expecting a surname, but he just shook his head.

"Would I be right in assuming you guys are fifth years?" He asked. They nodded. "Me too."

"Wait, but you can't be older than eleven!" Ron said accusingly. "How can you be in fifth year?"

Nico scowled, "I'm _Thirteen_," He said, "And I'm a transfer student, my school's very advanced, so I was placed in fifth year here." Hermione nodded; she understood this. Then another thought occurred to her.

"What school did you go to?" She asked. Nico gulped, and then hurriedly made up a school in his head.

"Delphi Academy of Magic," He said. Hermione frowned, but let it go. A whistle blew in the distance.

"Hurry up or we'll miss the train!" She said, before speed-walking to a carriage and entering it. Harry and Ron shrugged and followed her, with Nico trailing behind.

**Woo! Chapter 1 done already! Oh yeah!**

**Review/PM with concrit/comments/ideas. **


	2. Chapter 2 The train ride of awkwardness

Order of the Demigods chapter 2.

**I'm glad to hear how popular (ish) this story is. I really need a cover photo for it, so it'd be cool if someone out there could make one. I don't really want pictures of the characters on it, and it needs to be clear it's a xover. Aside from that, you can have free reign. Email it to ****rainbow_raptor .uk**** and it'll get to me. Thanks. And may I remind you that this **_**is **_**semi-AU, so any continuity issues like Ron and Hermione being prefects are probably on purpose. **

**And, I don't know if I should reset this in Prisoner of Azkaban instead, because Nico and Dementors would sure be cool. I need advice!**

**On the train.**

Nearly all the compartments were full. Ron huffed as he dragged his trunk down the train after Hermione in search for an empty compartment. Harry followed him, grumbling. Finally, they found a compartment and sat down, sliding the door shut after them.

Nico kept on walking down the train, looking for another compartment.

Inside the golden Trio's booth, Ron shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He sat next to Hermione, with Harry opposite them. Hermione pulled out a book from her trunk the moment she sat down.

_Wizarding Schools of the World_.

She flicked through the book before moving to the index. Trailing her finger down the page, she found schools listed under 'D'. There was _Delhi institute of Magic, Denmark school of the Magical Arts,_ and _Djibouti Academy of Magical Learning. _There was no Delphi Academy of Magic in the book.

"So he was lying?" Ron asked.

"Don't be so quick to accuse, Ron," Hermione retorted, "Some newer schools aren't listed here, and some schools don't want to be. There's a good chance Delphi Academy of Magic _does_ exist, it's just not in the book." Harry was quiet.

"But…what was that weird appearing-out-of-the-darkness thing he did?" Harry asked, "I've never heard of it. Hermione?" He asked. Obviously, the bushy haired girl, being the know-it-all of the group, was asked this.

"I don't know," She started. Ron gave a mock gasp in response, "He's definitely not old enough to _apparate_, but I don't know what else it could have been." She thought for a moment, frowning. Then, a tap on the glass made them all jump. Standing in the train's corridor was the boy, Nico, from earlier. Harry slid the door open and Nico grinned at them.

"Everywhere else is full, and I don't fancy going into _that_ compartment." He said, gesturing down the train to where they could clearly see Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle laughing at a passing first-year from inside a compartment. "So, can I come in here?" He asked. Harry nodded, and Nico dragged in his trunk and sat down next to him. Ron and Hermione exchanged worried looks.

Harry pulled out his wand and put it on the table. Nico remembered receiving his from his father, a week before he was aware of the mission, and checked his pocket to see if it was there. Surprisingly, it was still there. He put his wand on the table next to Harry's, and compared them. His wand was midnight black, and had a gorgon's hair (a very thin, dead snake) as the core. It was made of the wood of a tree from the fields of Asphodel, and was 15 inches long, and brittle. Harry's wand looked friendlier, shorter, and just a whole lot better.

"So… Hermione, right?" He started, "Any pointers on how to survive Hogwarts?" Ron rolled his eyes, and for the next half an hour, they explained about the numerous secret passages around the castle, how to avoid Filch the caretaker and his cat Mrs Norris, and what to expect for detentions from different teachers.

"…And that's why you should never provoke Snape." Harry finished dramatically. Nico snorted, amused. Ron and Hermione looked at each other suspiciously again, before all but dragging Harry out of the compartment with them.

"Er…Bathroom." Ron excused lamely, as Harry followed them outside the compartment.

"What was _that_ for?" Harry hissed at his best friends, annoyed that they'd interrupted him. "I was just getting to know the new kid."

"Harry, mate, that kid's seriously creepy," Ron began, "For all we know, he could be a junior Death Eater." Harry had to hold back a snort of his own at this. The kid was thirteen and Ron was accusing him of supporting Voldemort? That was far-fetched.

"Seriously? He-" Harry argued.

"He did that creepy shadow thing outside, and his school might not exist. We have reason enough to suspect him." Hermione added. The argument continued.

Inside the compartment, Nico heard the whole thing. When they came back in, he was a bit confused. They had mentioned a 'Dark Lord' which sounded a _lot_ like dear old dad to him. Chiron hadn't explained this bit to him, just that he needed to protect Harry. They'd said he might have been a Death Eater: a supporter of the Dark Lord. If the Dark Lord was Hades, Nico wasn't sure if he supported him or not. Hades could be very temperamental, but he did love his son underneath the rough exterior.

He coughed. They all looked at him. He pulled out a copy of the _Daily Prophet_, and pointed to an article which read: _Mulciber confirmed working for the Dark Lord_.

"Erm… who's you- sorry, who's _the_ dark lord?" He asked. No-one missed his near mistake. He'd nearly said _who's your Dark Lord_. Cursing in Greek under his breath, he waited for an answer. The others exchanged looks again.

"_Very, very_ evil wizard." Harry answered. "He killed lots of people, including my parents, and he _tried_ to kill _me_, but failed."

Nico sighed in relief; it wasn't Hades after all. No, he could remember being told something about a _Lord Voldemort_, which must've been the Dark Lord they were talking about.

"Oh." He said, not quite knowing what to say in a situation like this. Luckily, they were interrupted by the food trolley going past. Nico got up and walked up to the trolley, where he bought some liquorice wands, a chocolate frog, and some Bone Flavour Skulls. **(A.N they don't exist, I'm making it up.)** He dug into his pockets and pulled out some golden drachmas. Ron and Hermione were confused by this; why wasn't he using galleons/sickles/knuts instead?

She accepted two drachmas from Nico, before handing him his sweets. He looked at her coldly as she examined the coins, and she gulped.

The woman pushed the trolley on without even asking the others if they would like anything to eat. Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at him in surprise. He muttered a curse under his breath in Ancient Greek.

"What language was that?" Hermione asked, eager for information like a bloodhound on a scent, "I haven't heard of anything like it before. And what were those coins? They weren't galleons. Where was your old school? Where do you live?" She asked, rapid-fire question-ing him.

Nico glared at her. It was nice when they were all talking, like friends who'd known each other for months. Now, under the suspicious stares of her and Ron, he felt threatened and put his barriers back in place, becoming the sulking, antisocial teen he usually was again. And why were they trying to find out about him? Had he done something wrong or acted suspiciously?

"My, ah, paternal language, you could say." He answered, "And as for the other questions, well, wouldn't _you_ like to know!?" He said sarcastically. Hermione and Ron frowned, and Nico realised he was standing up, heart beating fast, his body preparing for fight-or-flight. Clenching his fists, he sat down again and ate his sweets. He particularly enjoyed the Bone Flavour Skulls which made him reminisce about his home in the palace of Hades. The rest of the train ride passed in silence.

When they got off the train, Nico left his luggage in the carriage with the others' and let himself be caught up in the tide of people. They arrived at a place filled with ornate carriages, and the things pulling the carriages-

_My lord,_ Nico heard in his head. "Gah!" He said, startled by the mysterious voices. Harry looked at him questioningly. "Er… Headache," he hastily explained. Harry, too, seemed transfixed by the strange creatures. They had somewhat reptilian scaly black skin, with flowing manes, also black. _What are those things, _he thought to himself. He didn't expect an answer.

_We are Thestrals, _he heard a voice say. He looked around and saw a large _Thestral_ behind him. _You can only see us if you've seen death,_ the Thestral explained. Another voice, one sounding younger, spoke to him.

_We have been awaiting you, lord. _It said. Suddenly he heard a murmuring of more voices in his head, thanking him for coming to them.

_Wait, why are you thanking me? _He thought at them.

_We are spirits from the Underworld, _one said, _Created by our King, Hades. Your father_. _You are our Prince._

Nico now understood how Percy felt in the presence of horses. Nodding, he got into the nearest carriage. Strangely (or not), nobody wanted to ride with him, so he got going quickly. He could feel the young thestral's pride at pulling the carriage with Nico in it.

When they got to the doors of the castle, he hopped out. A witch in a green tartan dress stepped up to him.

"Ah, you would be Mr Angelo, correct?" She asked. He nodded. "I am Professor McGonagall. Please wait here for someone to collect you after the first-years have been sorted." She told him, gesturing to a small door he hadn't seen yet. He obeyed, opening the door and walking in. The small, simple room had only a candle and an armchair in it. Suddenly tired, Nico sank onto the armchair and drifted off to sleep.

He was awoken by a hand on his shoulder. Immediately, he twisted his skull ring on his middle finger, summoning his Stygian Iron sword into his hand, startled by the sudden contact. The bearded old man who woke him chuckled.

"There will be no need for that just yet, Mr Angelo. Or do you prefer Nico?" He asked. Nico hastily touched the skull emblem on his sword and it shrank back into a ring. This old man didn't look like much of a threat.

"Nico is fine. Wait, how did you know me?" Nico said, confused.

"I am Professor Dumbledore. I spoke to Chiron about protection for Harry Potter. I know who you are, but a lot of the teachers don't. So be careful what you let slip. None of the students know."

"Professor, could you tell me who _does_ know?" He asked politely.

"Myself and Professor McGonagall know exactly who you are. Madam Pomfrey knows about your world and that you are a demigod, but not your parentage. Firenze the centaur knows you are from powerful ancient heritage, but not if you are mortal or a god. A couple more teachers know this, but I shan't bother you with whom just yet."

Nico was disgruntled at how many people knew who he was. He thought this was meant to be a secret mission! Dumbledore seemed to pick up on this, but merely chuckled again.

"Time for your Sorting." He said.

**Another chapter done! Next I'm planning on having the Sorting and some Angsty!Nico for you guys. I think I'll have him belonging at Hogwarts more than camp. It's like he doesn't quite fit in at camp, **_**or**_** Hogwarts. Poor Nico! (But he's still kinda… yeah.)**

**REVIEW PLEASE!**

**-Violet out. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Order of the Demigods chapter 3. **

**Lots of cool reviews! Yay me! Thanks, guys, for everything. This chapter is about Nico's Sorting, the feast, the Gryffindor dormitory, and his reactions to the ghosts.**

**-Violet Out**

_Previously…_

_"Time for your Sorting." He said._

Dumbledore walked out of the room, Nico following him.

"Time for my what, now?" He asked. Dumbledore chuckled.

"Sorting. At Hogwarts, we have four houses, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Slytherin, and Gryffindor. Whilst you are at Hogwarts, your house is like your family. Your triumphs will earn you house points; your misbehaviours will lose you them. At the end of the year, the house with the most house points wins the House Cup." He explained as they neared the great wooden doors. "Each house has produced powerful and noble witches and wizards, and each house has its own qualities."

"Qualities, Professor?" He asked the old man, "What kind?"

"Hufflepuff for the hard-working and loyal, Ravenclaw for the wise, Slytherin for the cunning, and Gryffindor for the brave."

"Do you have any idea what I'll be put in?" He asked again. Dumbledore just smiled secretively at him. They were now at the large wooden doors of the castle, and Dumbledore raised a hand and knocked on the door three times, before it was opened by the witch from earlier, Professor McGonagall. She led Nico down a few twisting hallways and into the great hall.

Everyone was silent as McGonagall introduced him.

"Students of Hogwarts, this is Nico di'Angelo. He has transferred here from Delphi Academy of Magic. I hope you will all make him feel welcome here at Hogwarts." She explained. Nobody looked like they would make him feel welcome at all. In fact, they looked at him like he was a new species of animal in a zoo, and Nico didn't really blame them; he knew he looked weird: a scrawny, pale, lanky kid dressed in all black.

"Nico will be joining Fifth Year, as his old school was very advanced." She finished, gesturing for Nico to walk up to the stool and put on the hat. He did, but certainly didn't expect the hat to talk to him.

_Well well, what have we got here? _It thought-told him. _So you're a demigod, aren't you?_

_Wha-?_

_Oh, don't worry, no-one else can hear, it's all in your head. Now let's have a look through those nice little memories of yours…_

Nico almost snorted in contempt. His memories certainly weren't nice. But he let the hat see them anyway, just holding back the scenes of the underworld, asphodel, and the fields of punishment. He was fairly sure the hat would explode if he let it see them.

_Hmm, you're certainly not loyal…_the hat murmured, _and wise, well, not really. You've got a fair bit of cunning and bravery though, so…Slytherin or Gryffindor. _

_I need to be in Gryffindor for the mission_

_Okay, better be _"Gryffindor!" The heat yelled the last part out loud. There were some half-hearted cheers from the table draped in red and gold, and he walked over to sit by the people from earlier; Harry, Ron, and Hermione. They just stared at him. He smirked.

Suddenly, the plates in front of them filled with food, but Nico wasn't that surprised by it. There were goblets just like that at Camp Half-Blood, so it wasn't new to him. He asked his plate for a burger and some fries; this had been one of his favourite meals since he summoned the dead with it at Geyron's ranch in the Labyrinth. The plate obliged, and he hurriedly started eating.

The burger started to taste sour in his mouth as he remembered he had to give a portion to the gods. How could he do that here? There was no brazier or fire-pit he could use. Instead, he grabbed five of the crispiest fries and held them under the table, summoning a little black hellfire in his hands to burn them. _"Hades" _He whispered in ancient Greek. Hermione looked at him funny, so he pretended it was a sneeze and he coughed to cover it up. He slumped back a little in his seat; summoning hellfire was a trick he'd learned only recently, and it took a lot out of him. He gobbled down the rest of the fries and burger as Dumbledore finished speaking.

"…And the very best of nights to you. Pip pip!" He finished. Everyone got up and the sound of scraping chairs filled the hall. He then realised he had absolutely _no idea_ where he was going. He was about to ask Hermione or Ron, but they'd gone off to lead the first-years (prefect duty). Although Nico was new to the school, he had no desire to be treated like those weedy first-years he saw, so he asked Harry instead, as they left the hall.

"Er, where exactly are we going?" He said. Harry smiled back at him, and he felt the beginnings of a friendship in the air. **(Aw…)**

"Follow me; we're going to the Gryffindor common room where our dormitories are." He said. They talked about random things as they walked, and Nico found his company enjoyable. He hadn't had a friend like this, ever. Harry treated Nico as his equal, unlike Percy who always thought himself superior, or Annabeth who usually just ignored him.

"Gah!" Nico exclaimed as his foot sank into a stair. Harry tried not to laugh as he pulled him out of the step.

"Yeah, some stairs do that. And-" He started to explain as the staircase shuddered and rotated 90 degrees; Nico cursed in Greek again as he grabbed onto the banister.

"-Some stairs do this." He finished. Finally, they reached the portrait of the fat lady. Nico looked at it/her confusedly, and Harry said the password.

"Capitibus." Harry said, and the portrait swung forwards to reveal a square hole which Harry climbed through. Nico warily followed him. As soon as he entered the room all chatter and talking stopped. The room was round, with a cosy fireplace and several large, squashy armchairs of red and gold, which matched most of the décor in the room. Everyone (once again) stared at Nico, apart from a boy in the corner with dark hair, a slightly red face, and a toad in his hands. The boy walked up to Nico and introduced himself.

"I'm-I'm Neville," he stammered nervously. Nico gave him a tentative smile, and Neville smiled back. He walked up a staircase on the left hand side, and down a hallway which led to the fifth-year boys dormitory. Nico followed him.

"Don't worry if people…stare," Neville began, "Or if they don't like you at first. Welcome to Gryffindor, Nico." He said. Nico was touched by Neville's friendly personality-he could tell the boy didn't fit in at Hogwarts much more than _he_ did, yet he was still trying his best to help him out. He wished people at camp could be that nice.

He walked over to a bed, and found his suitcase on it, along with a large crow in a cage. There was a note pinned to the cage, written in Ancient Greek. It read-

_Nico,_

_I heard about your quest. Hope you do well. His name is Corvus, its Latin for Crow. I thought he'd keep you company and help you out._

_-H_

Nico was shocked. Hades had sent this bird? He unlatched the cage, and Corvus immediately flew onto his shoulder. He gently rubbed the bird's beak, before setting him down on his bedside. He pulled the hangings of the bed closed, before undressing **(get your mind out of the gutter) **and lying in bed.

This was going to be one interesting mission.


	4. Chapter 4

Order of the Demigods Chapter 4

**So, sorry I didn't do the ghost reactions last chapter. I got a little…distracted, and I went to Alton Towers (a theme park) yesterday. It was EPIC! But, you guys don't wanna hear about me, you want the story! Onwards, my fellow supernerds!**

Nico groaned, tossing and turning in his sleep. He woke up, having hit his head on the wooden headboard of the bed. Looking at his watch, he realised it was 5:30 in the morning. He debated whether to go back to sleep or not, and decided against it. Being a demigod, he had a stronger metabolism and body than most people, and being a son of Hades, he found the bare minimum of sleep he needed to function properly the next day was only an hour. But, he liked to sleep more. Nonetheless, he pulled himself out of bed and dressed in his Hogwarts robes. Then, he grabbed his schoolbag and started piling the books he needed into it, before he went down the stairs and into the common room. An indignant squawk reached his ears from upstairs, and he grinned before going back up and retrieving Corvus **(remember, the crow?) **from his bedside table, where he'd somehow got a talon stuck in the draw. The bird quickly flew to his shoulder and he went to sit by the fire.

A thought occurred to him, and he tied a note to Corvus' left leg, before instructing him to find the headmaster. Nico waited for his return, and sure enough, about half an hour later, (at 6.45), his crow flew back in through the window. He untied the reply, and unrolled it, keen to see what he'd written.

_Nico,_

_Of course you can take him to lessons and around the school with you. Pupils are allowed to take their owls, but they find them a little too noisy, which won't be a problem with yours. I read the Latin on his tail feathers, and I must say whoever sent you that bird has admirable taste in names. Corvus is a great name for a crow, and I know he will be obedient and obey only you. _

_-Professor Dumbledore._

Nico smiled; he was allowed to take Corvus with him at school. Then he remembered the letter, and gently ruffled the crow's tail feathers-on one of them was written 'Corvus' in faint grey ink, and on the undersides of the other feathers were his many talents.

_Shadow-travel_

_Combat. _ Nico had to hold back a snort at this one, but then spotted the bird's sharp talons and winced.

_Retractable claws_. Nico realised this was why his shoulders weren't ripped to shreds

_Extremely intelligent._ This one needed no comment.

Nico jumped as the rest of his fellow fifth-years (boys) descended the staircase, arguing.

"…Swear he's gone mad, did you see the Daily Prophet at all over the summer, Dean?" One said angrily. This was a boy with sandy hair and blue eyes, with a flat-looking face.

"Come on Seamus, I know it's far-fetched, but he can't be making all this up, can he?" Another boy, with dark skin and short, black curly hair, reasoned.

Neville, the boy Nico had met last night, piped up and started speaking.

"The _Prophet_'s the thing that's losing it; it's slating Dumbledore as well. He wouldn't make this up; in case any of you didn't notice, he doesn't _like_ attention and he's famous enough already."

Nico felt proud of him for standing up for himself-he knew Neville was quite timid and shy.

"Oh, hi Nico. Didn't notice you there," Neville greeted him. The other boys, Dean and Seamus, immediately froze, looking coldly at Nico. Dean broke the stare and came over to introduce himself, but Seamus stayed fixed where he was.

"Hey, 'name's Dean Thomas," He said, "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Nico replied politely.

"Who's this little guy?" He asked, pointing towards Corvus, who had his head under his wing, still perched on Nico's shoulder.

"Oh, he's Corvus. You guys have owls, I have a crow." Nico explained. Corvus, hearing his name, poked his head out and stared at Neville and Dean.

"Whoa," Dean commented, "You've got one scary looking pet there." Corvus crowed **(sorry, no pun intended.)** with pride, and Nico smiled at him.

"It's okay, these are friends." He told his crow. Corvus' attitude towards the two changed immediately, and he left Nico's shoulder to perch on Neville's head, and then jumped onto Dean's outstretched arm, before returning to Nico. They looked at the bird, impressed.

"Breakfast time!" Ron yelled as he came down the staircase. He too froze when he saw Nico and Corvus, who just laughed (the bird snickered quietly) and left the room with Neville and Dean, chatting.

Hermione and the girls of fifth-year Gryffindor came down too, then Harry, then several others. Ron and Seamus shared suspicious glances, before walking out of the dormitory as well.

Nico chatted to Neville and Dean as they walked down to the Great Hall for breakfast. He found their company thoroughly enjoyable, and liked their light-heartedness in comparison to his friends at camp (namely Annabeth) and their serious attitude.

When they reached the hall, they grabbed plates and sat down on the Gryffindor bench, digging in to breakfast. Nico ate fried bread, bacon, beans, and a fried egg. The others had literally everything available. They then talked for a while, before Dean looked at his timetable and complained loudly.

"What?" Nico asked. Neville realised what it was and muttered something unpleasant under his breath.

"Potions first, then History of Magic with Binns." Harry said from behind them.

"What's so wrong about that?"

"Snape." Three voices replied. "He's the potions professor here." Harry explained. "He's, well, not our favourite teacher."

Nico snickered, and Corvus clacked his beak. Harry raised one eyebrow at the bird, but then waved his hand in dismissal and went back to his breakfast. Several owls swooped down onto the tables, which startled Nico's crow, which squawked in indignation and started snapping at the larger birds. Before an all-out war of the birds could take place, Nico stroked Corvus' head and reassured him these birds meant no harm.

The slight disruption of the birds fighting caught the attention of several unfriendly-looking Slytherin students. A rat-faced boy with pale, sleek blond hair, and two thuggish gorilla-types with square faces and menacing expressions.

"What's all the fuss about here?" The pale boy drawled.

"Go away, Malfoy." Neville stammered, nervous. Malfoy ignored him and walked up to the table where Nico sat. Corvus was taking advantage of their distraction and was on the other side of the table, eating Ron's bacon.

Malfoy stepped closer to Nico.

"Well well, if it isn't Hogwarts' latest freak," He said as he stood behind Nico. Nico stood up, and pale, scrawny thirteen-year-old that he was, you could tell Malfoy was a little bit scared of him. The other Gryffindors turned their heads and watched the scene unfold.

Nico fidgeted, turning his skull ring on his hands round and round. He felt like revealing his sword, but knew it would attract attention and quite possibly blow his cover. Instead, he held out his arm in front of him. Malfoy looked confused for a moment, then got the wrong idea.

"So you want a fight?" He said loudly. The two gorillas (Crabbe and Goyle, Nico remembered Neville telling him) looked at each other and cracked their knuckles. Nico was about to laugh at how ridiculous this all was, when Corvus landed on his arm, just like he'd hoped. The bird glared **(can birds glare?)** at Malfoy, and raised one foot, extending just one razor-sharp talon.

Malfoy scowled then backed away from the two angry beings.

"Awesome!" Dean yelled, breaking the awkward silence that'd fallen over the table. "Dude, that was seriously cool," He continued "No owl is that loyal to its owner."

Nico smiled at him, before pushing his chair under and saying "Isn't it lesson time?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Order of the Demigods, chapter 5.**

**Yeah! More reviews are epic! Thanks guys, seriously. It means a lot to me *laughs***

**Onwards!**

Nico now knew what Harry had meant by 'not our favourite teacher'.

He walked into the dungeon (where the class is held) and almost gagged at the powerful stench that assaulted his nostrils as he walked in. It smelled somewhat like the underworld, only less pleasant and more rancid, like the time a camper had left a tub of maggots in his cabin for a (not very funny) prank.

Neville beckoned him over to a cauldron in the corner, where he sat down, and they watched as the rest of the class filed in, including Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle from earlier. Harry sat next to Ron and Hermione sat across from them on her own. It all went silent as a greasy-haired, hook-nosed man came into the room.

"Weasley. Shut up. I'm sure the urgent gossip you need to share with Miss Granger can wait until after the lesson." He said. Ron and Hermione turned bright red and Malfoy snickered.

"Today we will be attempting to brew the- Oh, but how could I forget?" He asked rhetorically, "The _transfer student_ is in this class." All eyes turned to Nico, who sat on the edge of the wooden chair and scowled.

"Oh, look," He continued, "He's also brought a friend," Everyone stared at Corvus, who was still perched on Nico's shoulder. Malfoy glared at the bird.

"I don't know how you do things over at _your_ school, _Angelo_, but at Hogwarts we have pedigree owls, none of your mongrel excuses for birds." **(Angelo is what Malfoy calls Nico, to make fun of his name.)** Corvus didn't like that one bit. He flew of Nico's shoulder and was heading straight for Malfoy, when a low whistle made him stop. The class looked back at Nico, who was pointing at the ceiling. The crow cawed, almost _asking _him if he could attack Malfoy, before clacking his beak and flying up to the rafters of the ceiling.

"Yeah, run awa-" Malfoy started, before being interrupted by Snape.

"Enough." He said. The class was shocked; Snape usually turned a blind eye to or even helped Draco tease/bully other students, and now he was actively _stopping_ him from doing so? Weird.

Snape made the potion's instructions appear on the blackboard with his wands, and everyone got out their ingredients and started brewing.

Neville's potion was a disaster waiting to happen, and Snape must've known that, for he made him test his Potion of Anger on Corvus. Nico's crow protested and tried to escape, but the professor captured him with a Summoning Charm. Corvus squawked in protest as the potion was trickled onto the oily-black feathers on his back. His squawks turned into caws of pure rage, and he extended his talons, heading straight for Neville.

Neville cowered and started to back away, only to trip over a student's bag on the floor. The angry crow was still flying towards him. Nico clicked his fingers and the bird quickly returned to his shoulder, and if crows could look embarrassed, this one certainly did. Neville whimpered and slowly edged away before Nico reassured him that his pet was under control.

At the end of the class, poor Neville was still shaking slightly, although Dean and Ron seemed to think it was really cool, the way Nico could control him like that.

As they walked to the next class, History of Magic, Nico could tell something was wrong. It felt a bit like the underworld; there was so much death around it clouded his senses, making him feel vulnerable and exposed.

When they entered the classroom, his suspicions were confirmed, and he felt the death-aura here, stronger than ever. It slightly overwhelmed him, and Nico stumbled as he walked into the class. Harry caught him, looking at him questioningly.

"Are you ok?" He asked. Nico nodded and hurried to find a desk; Neville had sat next to Dean so he was sitting alone, which he didn't particularly mind. He transferred Corvus from his shoulder to the desk, and the bird put his head under his wing.

"You feelin' it too, buddy?" He asked the bird, who hooted mournfully back at him. Then the teacher entered the room, and Nico's jaw dropped. The teacher had entered _through_ the wall-that was weird enough. But Professor Binns was a translucent pale silvery colour- a ghost.

He'd just started to lecture the class when his eyes **(do ghosts even **_**have**_** eyes?) **fell on Nico and he stuttered, stopping his droning speech about giant wars.

"Mr di'Angelo, an honour indee-"

"Binns." Nico replied coolly. "It was December 1786, wasn't it?" He asked, slightly sarcastically.

"Y-yes," The nervous ghost answered, and Nico frowned.

"Why are you still here?" Nico was confused-he'd seen a part of this man's soul in the underworld.

"I ret-I returned." At this, Nico seemed to grow very angry indeed.

"My father will hear about this," Nico said threateningly, and then his expression softened. "But I can see you do like your job, really. I'm sure I could persuade him to grant you a reprieve." The teacher gave Nico a rare smile, before continuing with his lecture.

**Slight Golden Trio POV**

_What's going on?_ Hermione thought, watching the exchange between Nico and Professor Binns. Ron and Harry looked back at her, just as confused. It almost seemed like Nico was threatening him. _Threatening _a teacher_. _Hermione was shocked- how could you threaten a teacher, and a dead one at that? What kind of blackmail could you possibly hold against a ghost?

After the lesson, the three huddled together outside for break.

"His dad must be someone really powerful," Ron said unnecessarily. Harry nodded absently, and Hermione made an agreement noise.

"I wonder what kind of thing he does." Hermione said vaguely.

"Um, you're going to have to elaborate a bit on that one, Hermione," Ron replied.

"I mean, what makes him so powerful. Is he in the ministry? Is he a Death Eater?" She asked.

Ron shuddered at this suggestion. "I told you so on the train." He commented.

"Ron, Hermione, just because his father _might_ be a Death Eater, it doesn't make _him_ one as well. For all we know, he could hate his father and be anti-Voldemort like us." The two others flinched at the use of You-Know-Who's name. They were surprised at Harry's open-mindedness, and that he could so readily trust someone he knew so little.

**So, yeah, this chapter's a little small. Sorry, but I'm really busy with homework etc. I NEED MORE IDEAS! PLEASE REVIEW THEM OR PM ME. Seriously, I'm running out of inspiration. **

**-Supernerdette. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Order of the Demigods chapter 6**

**So many kind reviews! SonofZeus0001, especially. Thanks to all of you who gave me ideas, you know who you are. No, I'm not bringing Percy in yet, although I do love Percy being all brotherly to Nico.**

Harry was beginning to get annoyed. It hadn't even been a week, and already Ron and Hermione were formulating a plan to tail Nico around and see if he really was a deatheater. They met to discuss this at a table in the corner of the Gryffindor common room, and decided (reluctantly on Harry's part) that they would enlist the help of his invisibility cloak, and subtly try to find out information.

"Yes, but _why_ do we need to do this?" Harry asked, exasperated.

"I told you, he could be a-"

"Deatheater, yeah, we got that." He replied, "But it doesn't make sense. Wouldn't he have killed me by now if he was?"

Hermione and Ron shuddered; they didn't like it when Harry discussed his own mortality with him so blasé like that, but they knew it was from past experience that he could act so calmly. So, they decided to keep a close eye on Nico for the time being.

The next morning, they had double Defence against the Dark arts with Professor Umbridge. Nico had been absent for the first lesson they had had with her, so he didn't know what (not) to do in her lessons. They filed in drearily to the classroom and got out their books, dumping their schoolbags on the floor. Nico sat in the front row, and Umbridge's eyes widened as she saw him.

"A word, please, Mr Nico." She simpered, and he followed her outside.

"Well?" He asked, now they were away from prying eyes.

"I was not aware there were…extras in this class, so…?" She asked, a little confused. A plan suddenly popped into Nico's mind, fully formed, like Athena springing from Zeus' head.

"Didn't Professor Dumbledore inform you of the reinforcements?" He asked back. Her eyes widened further, making her look like an owl with a makeup addiction.

Dumbledore had approached her on the night before term started and told her of Nico. He'd been very vague, only telling her that "An exceptionally powerful being will be at Hogwarts next term as protection, and I may inform you that they are more powerful than any here, even I. So please be careful, Dolores. We haven't had the cleanest track record when it comes to Defence teachers."

"Of _course_, Mr Nico, but I highly doubt _you_…" She said, before she hurriedly ushered Nico back into the classroom and told him to sit down.

He did, and noted a pamphlet on his chair that read- 'Half-breeds and why we shouldn't accept them.' Nico snorted, amused, and flicked through the pamphlet. Professor Umbridge noticed this, and raised her toad-like head.

"Something funny, Nico?" she asked with a sugary-sweet tone.

"No, Professor."

"Then why-"

"I was just reading this, Professor. Is it true that 'Half-Breeds are a disgrace to wizard kind'?" he quoted from the leaflet in his lap, and several heads turned in his direction. Umbridge flushed red.

"Well-"

"And that 'No half-breed will ever be as powerful as a wizard'?" More heads turned, and now the majority of the class was watching his and Umbridge's exchange as if it were a very exciting quidditch match.

"I think you'll find that wasn't-" The professor tried to interrupt. Nico's death-glare intensified. Suddenly, feelings of sadness, terror, despair and fear filled the room, and everyone's shadows grew longer, contorting themselves into shapes a bit like faces. Strangely enough, Neville, Dean, Harry and Corvus **(duh)** weren't affected at all. Everyone else felt a bit like three hundred Dementors had somehow all entered the room at once, forgetting happiness and only remembering bad times.

"Professor," Nico hissed quietly, "Do you still doubt…?" The look of fear on her face was clearly evident, and her plump hands were shaking with fear at her sides. Then Nico chuckled, and the fog that held the class disappeared, and his classmates looked (a bit) happier.

"Wha-?" Ron choked out; his voice still croaky from Nico's bit of magic earlier.

"Nothing to worry about, class, just Peeves being nasty again," Umbridge hastily excused, half-glancing at Nico out of the corner of her eye.

"Peeves?" He asked innocently.

"The poltergeist."

_Jeez, these guys had a poltergeist too? What kind of undead didn't they have?_ Nico had seen poltergeists in the underworld before, in fact, many of them hung around Hades' palace, and they were kind of like their servants. They liked do anything to gain favour with Hades or anyone close to him, in order to not be sent to Asphodel.

There was one Nico liked in particular called Bertie, who had taken a liking to Nico and was sort of like his personal butler. In his previous existence, Bertie had been an entertainer for the rich court, so he knew _exactly _what to say to the Royal Death group (Hades, Persephone, Nico.)

The bell rang, and the students packed away for break. Umbridge hurriedly left the room, mumbling something about seeing Dumbledore.

Nico was intrigued about the poltergeist. He closed his eyes, letting his death-sense guide him. He could sense people's life auras around him, so he could usually navigate blind. He sensed residual death nearby, and knew he'd found the poltergeist. He opened his eyes and…

He bumped into Harry, who looked at him questioningly. How did his death-sense get him here? If he wasn't mistaken, the aura came from Harry's bag.

"What've you got in there? I can sen-" He stopped himself before he revealed anything else.

"Um, er," Harry responded intelligently. "Just my books and school things." Something about Harry's body language seemed suspicious; maybe it was the way he gripped his schoolbag so tightly his knuckles turned white.

"Are you sure?" Nico asked before he could stop himself. _Great, _he thought, _now he's bound to think I'm some kind of weirdo_. Instead, Harry looked around furtively before beckoning Nico into a nearby secret corridor.

"I shouldn't let you see this, but…" Harry reached into his schoolbag, and for a brief second Nico thought he was going for a knife, but he only pulled out a large piece of silvery flowing material. He gasped; this was Death's very own cloak of invisibility. That must've been why he'd sensed it.

"It's an-"

"Invisibility cloak, yes, I know. A, ah, colleague of my father's had one like this, but he gave it away."

Harry looked stunned that Nico knew what it was, and he was also eager to get the new information to Hermione. He mumbled some excuse about homework and dashed off down the staircase. Nico was about to follow him when the staircase moved and he cursed.

Harry had just got back to the common room to meet up with Ron and Hermione, who were eating sweets from Honeydukes, eagerly waiting in the armchairs by the fireplace.

"So, what've you got?" Hermione asked him quickly. Ron shot her a bemused look.

"Give him a break, Hermione, he only just got in." He chided. Harry waved it off.

"Well, it was sort of interesting because he bumped into me," He began, "And he had his eyes kind of half-open, and he said he…noticed something in my bag." Hermione looked suspicious and Ron just looked eager for him to continue. "I told him it was nothing, but he didn't believe me so I showed him the invisibility cloak."

Hermione choked on a chocolate frog. "You _what?_ Harry, that was extremely risky; if he _is _a Deatheater then you-know-who probably knows your only means of hiding by now." She all but shrieked at him. Ron looked taken aback at her sudden anger.

"He _isn't _a Deatheater, I'm sure." Harry insisted.

"Sorry, mate, but didn't you see what happened in Umbridge's class?" Ron asked, "That must've been some _serious _Dark Magic. Even if it wasn't him, it certainly wasn't Peeves." Hermione nodded her agreement.

"Fine. Anyway, he looked at it and said something about someone his dad works with having one and giving it away." Harry explained. Hermione turned pale and made a sound not unlike a mouse being trod on.

"_Hermione_? What the heck was t_hat_?" Ron asked.

"Well, there's an old legend about invisibility cloaks, and it starts with three brothers…" And Hermione began to tell them the Tale of the Three Brothers. As most of it was written in Ancient Runes, and she didn't have her books with her, she had to give them the idiot's version. Ron didn't really mind. All three of them had wide eyes, and the sky was almost pitch black with night by the time the story was finished.

"So…what you're saying is; Nico's dad works with Death." Ron summarised.

A quick flutter of black wings filled the room, and Harry and the others spun around to see the bird soaring up the stairs to the boy's dormitory. They shared dark looks; Corvus was never far from Nico, and that meant Nico had probably heard them.

**Yeah! Woo! Feeling all peppy, having finished other chapter already. **

**Just to let you know, I'll probably be mostly (read only) focusing on **_**this **_**story now. Sorry if you're expecting updates on the others, but I'm too busy.**

**Oh yeah, and if anyone has any stories I know of then I'd be happy to beta them for you. **

**-Supernerdette out. **


	7. Chapter 7 (a bit of fluff)

**So many reviews! Just wanted to say thanks to…alexandrarodriguez (twice) and SummerSpirit18 for their short but sweet reviews. Also, again, SonofZeus0001 for the helpful advice via PM.**

**This chapter, I wanted to include a random Dementor attack, and other stuff. Nico knows they're following him the whole time, btw. **

Nico was actually amused for once. This was a rare occurrence, and so was not to be taken lightly. He was amused because of the Golden Trio's lack of subtlety in following him and trying to find out about him. He was amused because of what he'd said and hinted at to Umbridge. And, he was amused because of the poltergeist that hung around Hogwarts. He discovered Peeves hanging around in a Transfiguration class the other day.

Nico had just been wandering around the deserted corridor like usual, when a piece of chalk hit him hard in the back of the head. Immediately he turned, his demigodly-battle reflexes kicking in to grab the person behind him. His hands closed around a cold feeling neck. This made him turn around again for a closer look because, well, the neck in his hands felt…inhumanly cold.

Shocked, Nico turned to find…he was holding onto the poltergeist by the scruff of his neck. The poltergeist looked terrified of him; no other students could _touch_ the ghosts.

"Um…you're a poltergeist." Nico said intelligently. The ghost-thing rolled its dark silver eyes.

"Yes, well done. And would you care to grace me with _your_ name, and the reason you're basically strangling me? It's a good thing we ghosts don't need to breathe anymore." The poltergeist replied. Nico immediately let go of his neck-the ghost started massaging it tenderly.

"I'm Nico." With these two words, the poltergeist's manner changed considerably. He straightened his little bow tie and stood up straight.

"Nico, the Ghost King?" He nodded, "Very sorry about the chalk, Nic, very sorry indeed. Pray tell, how is Bertie?" Nico was annoyed at this; his name was Nic_o_, with an 'o', not _Nic_. Then, he was shocked. This poltergeist knew Bertie**? (Bertie is his sort of Poltergeist-butler in the underworld, for those of you who can't be bothered to read the last chapter.)** "Oh, I do apologise. How rude of me. I'm Peeves, Hogwarts' resident poltergeist."

"How do you know Bertie?" Nico asked, a little confused. Peeves grinned at him.

"Oh, we poltergeists get around," He explained vaguely. "Anyhow, good day to you, I must be off now." And with that, Peeves left Nico to his confusing thoughts.

After a while, he decided to go down to the common room to find out where Harry, Ron, and Hermione were. When he got there, he found everyone crowded around the door/hole looking at him suspiciously.

"What?" He said. A few people shifted nervously. "_What happened_?" He hissed louder. People shuffled around a bit to reveal an empty birdcage on top of the armchair.

"Well, Nico, you see, erm…" Ron tried to explain but his nerve failed. Hermione squeaked, and even Harry looked a bit nervous.

"Your bird disappeared." Neville said bluntly. "Basically, these three tried to put him in a cage-" He gestured to Ron, Harry, and Hermione, but was cut off by another of Nico's death glares, aimed not at him but at the golden trio.

_slight Golden Trio POV_

"Told you we should've just left it," Harry whispered angrily to Ron.

"Hey, how is this _my_ fault?" The ginger replied angrily. "If _Hermione_ hadn't grabbed the bird then-"

"You two, be quiet. Look at Nico." Hermione added. They did, and were surprised to see him stop glaring at him and chuckle. Neville was telling him what happened.

"…and they grabbed his tail feathers and he sort of squawked and then," Neville explained, "well, you won't believe this but it all went kind of dark and he just disappeared." They watched carefully to gauge Nico's reaction; it was bound to be strange. You didn't get told your pet had disappeared every day.

Nico just chuckled again and held out his arm. "He'll come back," He told them. Sure enough, the air started darkening in a spot at the end of his arm, and people's shadows were growing longer and longer, until the darkness became pure black and a beak poked out, followed by a feathery body and tail with two scaly feet. Corvus held a small diamond in his beak and looked very proud of himself.

"Woah," someone in the crowd around them said, "That crow's magic."

"Hey, we aren't allowed magical pets here," Seamus yelled. "McGonagall's gonna _love_ that."

Nico stroked Corvus' back and rolled his eyes. "Drop it, please," He said. Looking ashamed, (can a bird look ashamed?) he complied, dropping the diamond into Nico's outstretched hand.

"Wait, is that a diamond?" Dean asked from Nico's other side. Nico pretended not to hear him, and instead turned to Corvus and set him down on the chair. His talons slightly ripped the plush velvet fabric as they took his weight. The bird looked down guiltily, not meeting Nico's eyes with his own black beady ones.

Nico carefully examined the diamond before slipping it into a pocket of his robes.

"What did I say about stealing from Seph's garden?" He asked rhetorically, "Don't." Corvus cawed sadly, and Nico looked back at him.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm not angry; I know you got this as a gift to me, but Seph's gonna be mad at me, and although I appreciate the thought, I don't really wanna be a dandelion again." He said the last part of the sentence quietly to Corvus. He clacked his beak together like laughter.

"It wasn't funny!" Nico insisted, snickering anyway. "I stayed like that for _two days _before Dad found me!" Corvus clacked his beak again, but then suddenly stopped and stood up rigidly on Nico's arm, beady eyes trained on the portrait-hole. Sure enough, within 5 seconds, McGonagall entered.

"…I'm not making this up, Professor, it just appeared and-" Seamus said angrily. Professor McGonagall snorted contemptuously.

"That may well be what you saw, Seamus, but that doesn't mean it's what happened." She replied coldly. "However, it certainly _is_ unusual and I will be sure to investigate it," Seamus's face brightened. "And what kind of animal might this be?" She asked.

"It's a crow, Professor." He told her. McGonagall's posture stiffened.

"And would I be right in saying the animal belongs to Mr Di'Angelo, and is it that bird I see over there?" She asked, gesturing to where Nico and Corvus sat.

"Yes, Professor." He answered, hoping Nico would get told off or his pet removed. Instead, he was shocked as McGonagall went over and started petting the animal as well.

_(Sort of )Nico/Corvus POV_

McGonagall finished her conversation with Seamus and headed over towards us. Nico knew that boy was trouble. The Hogwarts Professor sat down in an armchair adjacent to his. Corvus cawed at her **(AN tongue twister alert!)** and extended his talons, ripping small holes in the upholstery of the furniture. Professor McGonagall raised one eyebrow but remained silent. It was Corvus who spoke first.

He made a funny noise a bit like a cat with a hairball, and Nico looked at him concernedly. His neck bulged weirdly, and he coughed up… a large ruby about the size of a table tennis ball, followed by two tiny opals. Corvus made another noise and sort of…growled in frustration. His beak was stuck, jammed shut by a small sapphire. Nico sighed, before leaning back and helping his crow unstick his beak.

"That's an unusual pet you've got there, Mr Di'Angelo," McGonagall said quietly. "Or at least a lot of other people seem to think so." Nico stiffened.

"It's from…my Father's place." He explained, and McGonagall instinctively flinched away from the bird. "He won't hurt you. C'mere, Corvus," He said. The bird obeyed, and retracted his talons and landed on Nico's arm. "Corvus, this is Professor…?"

"Minerva McGonagall." She supplied. Corvus' reaction to this was very strange. He bent his scaly knees and bowed his head respectfully. Nico laughed.

"No, Corvus, not _that_ Minerva. McGonagall's a teacher here." Corvus ruffled his feathers, embarrassed. "Sorry, Professor, but Minerva was the Roman name for our Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle strategy. Corvus is a clever bird, so he'd rather bow than be blasted into ashes."

"Is that what they do?" McGonagall asked, shell-shocked. Nico nodded absently.

"If you're not careful. And sorry about the jewels, it's just birds are attracted to seeds, and my stepmother," He said the word like it tasted sour in his mouth, "Plants these." He held up a tiny opal.

**Blaaaarrrgh. That was 1390 words of nothing. Sorry, it's just a filler chapter for now as I'm so busy. **

**Supernerdette out. **


	8. Chapter 8

**So many reviews for just a fluffy chapter! Here's how it goes: I need at least 45 reviews before I make chapter 9. Sorry, but reviews are my fuel and I'm running on empty at the moment. **

Hermione was furious. Why, I hear you ask? It was because, for once, she _didn't _know something and she absolutely hated it. She was used to being the know-it-all, and although she was often teased for it, she was proud of the fact that she knew a lot. She knew she was missing something very important.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were listening in on Nico when he was talking to McGonagall, and, from what they heard, they knew Corvus was not a normal crow. Of course, everyone knew that from the moment he'd disappeared when they'd tried to grab him, but still. In hindsight, it had been very foolish of them to try and trap the bird in a cage- they'd just been trying to satisfy curiosity about Nico, and thought the (seemingly) defenceless bird would be a valuable mine of information. They knew Nico's dad had something to do with death, and that someone called 'Seph' liked to plant jewels. They also knew Corvus came from Nico's father's place, and that his father was very powerful indeed. How they came across that last fact was a very interesting story indeed.

_Start flashback…_

It had been an unusually warm morning in mid-autumn, **(Nico's been there for about a month now.)** and Nico had been walking to lessons with Neville, Dean, and of course Corvus, who perched like always on Nico's shoulder. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had been following them, trying not to be seen.

Neville, being the clumsy person he was, hadn't looked before walking round the corner, and had unfortunately walked straight into Malfoy, who, for once, didn't have either Crabbe _or_ Goyle with him. The ferret-faced boy glared pointedly at Neville, who trembled slightly.

"Why, you little-" Malfoy drew back his hand to hit Neville, but Nico stepped forward and grabbed it, instead twisting his arm around into an uncomfortable and painful-looking arm lock. The look on Malfoy's face was priceless- he looked like a cow hit with a shovel. "Release me at once, you foreign scum!" Malfoy yelled, struggling. Neville and Dean just looked at the two, shocked.

"Yes, of course I'm going to release you so you can go beat up my friends," Nico said sarcastically. Malfoy struggled more, lashing out violently but to no avail. With a stroke of luck, Malfoy landed a hit to Nico's jaw, and the demigod flinched but didn't let go. Finally, Malfoy calmed down and, once Neville and Dean were safely out of reach, Nico let him go.

"How-how dare you! My father will hear about this, mark my words!" Malfoy spluttered, embarrassed. Nico laughed.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" He retorted.

"My _Father_ is very high up in the ministry, _Angelo_." Malfoy said back.

"And what makes you think _my_ father isn't even more powerful?" Nico asked, "Or, what makes you think _I_'m not that powerful?" Malfoy had scurried off, shocked.

_End flashback…_

So, Hermione was sure she was missing something. She did what she usually did, and headed to the library to try and find out. When she got there, she was greeted by a _very_ unusual sight. Sitting there, on a large square cushion, was the boy she'd been wondering about, Nico. Corvus was half-asleep in his schoolbag, which was on the floor next to the cushion. He was reading a book, and Hermione tried to figure out what it was, but it seemed to be written in another language. She walked over, deciding to go and say hi.

"Hello, Nico." She said politely. He remained stuck in his book. "Nico?" She asked again.

"Oh, hi Hermione, I didn't see you there. What's up?" He asked hesitantly.

"Nothing much, I usually come down here." She answered. It wasn't a lie but it felt like one to her.

"'Kay." He finished, turning back to his book.

What happened next was just strange. Peeves floated in through the wall, much to the dislike of Madam Pince (the librarian), and sat down (floated) next to Nico. He didn't blow a raspberry, he didn't pull the book out of the younger boy's hands; he didn't even flick the pages. Hermione was shocked- _Peeves _was being _respectful_? That was about as likely as Voldemort giving Harry a birthday present, but, sure enough, it was happening.

Hermione took out a book and pretended to read it, whilst she was really keeping an eye on the two people (beings?) opposite her on the next cushion.

The strange duo started to talk in low voices that couldn't be overheard, and they seemed to be arguing, but only playfully. From what Hermione could gather, Peeves wanted Nico's permission to do something with the other ghosts, and Nico didn't _really_ want to. But the weirdest behaviour was at the end of their conversation, where they seemed to come to some sort of agreement.

Peeves reached over and _shook Nico's hand_.

It didn't go straight through-in fact it looked very much like a normal handshake. Hermione stifled a gasp and hid behind her book.

Nico smiled at him and took out a scrap of paper from his bag. Corvus flew out, disgruntled. The next thing he did was very strange. He pressed the small skull ring on his left middle finger to the paper, leaving an embossed skull on it.

**_Nico 2****nd**** person POV_**

Nico smirked at Hermione's bewildered expression; she wasn't nearly as good at subtlety as she thought- even Harry was better than her at it.

He turned back to Peeves as he got out a small slip of paper from his schoolbag. This small act disturbed Corvus, who flew up into the air indignantly. _Great, _Nico thought, as if I wasn't conspicuous enough anyway. He hissed at the bird in Ancient Greek, ordering him to come down at once.

Peeves tapped him on the shoulder; he grinned as Hermione squeaked again-although it was probably dangerous to his cover story, it was funny when people were shocked at him. This time it was probably because no-one else could touch the ghosts.

Peeves looked at him hopefully. This made Nico feel uncomfortable, **(get your minds out of the gutter, folks,)** because no-one really paid him much attention or asked him for stuff-they just wanted his help in battle, and even then, it was usually for a decoy. He had the bruises to prove it. So he felt like he had to agree to Peeves' request, if only to make sure he had some friends, even if they weren't really alive.

He stomped his skull ring onto the paper and wrote something on it as well. His skull ring carried his own death-aura with it, and he (and most undead beings or beings to do with death) could tell who something belonged to because of the life/death aura on it, sort of like a dog with a scent. So, the recipient (s) of the note would be able to be sure it was from him, not from an impostor. He tied the note to Corvus' leg with a shadow tendril, which was handy because it wouldn't come off until it reached the destination, and sent him off.

Peeves left eagerly, and Nico was left to muse on the other ghosts of Hogwarts. He had been avoiding them so far because he didn't want his cover blown. But he'd accidentally found Peeves, so what would happen if he bumped into the others? Also, he needed to check the ghosts were actually _allowed_ to stay in the overworld/world of the living, or whether they were just illegal immigrants into the country of life.

**Bleargh. Sorry, rubbish ending. Anyone guess what Peeves was asking, or what's gonna happen? Shoutout if you guess right. **

**Has anyone out there watched Rise of The Guardians? If so, should I do a oneshot about Jack and (maybe) Tooth?**

**-Review please, Supernerdette out. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Order of the Demigods chapter 9. **

**Can I just say, a lot of you are really good at guessing, but sadly none of you have quite got the right idea. ****Guest, you guessed pretty well, but next time could you sign off with a nickname or something so other guests don't get confused? Thanks. Also, SummerSpirit18 has a pretty good idea of what's going on. **

**Thanks for all the reviews and sorry if this chapter's a bit late. **

Nico was excited about the upcoming event at Hogwarts. Peeves had spoken to him about this, after all. Peeves was like an overexcited fangirl with Nico- he thought he was some sort of celebrity. Fair enough, in the world of the dead, he _was_ a celebrity.

Other ghosts had come to talk to Peeves about Nico- they knew he was something special, but they didn't quite know the extent of it, so they hadn't said too much.

The poltergeist had asked Nico for a favour. He wanted the Prince of Death to come to the Annual Ghost Reunion of Hogwarts, which was appropriately held on the winter solstice- December 21st. At this event, all the ghosts who had ever inhabited the castle joined together for a huge party. Peeves had said that if Nico was there, he could make sure the other ghosts had a good time and stayed in the dungeons; during previous get-togethers, they'd caused such a fuss in the castle that they were temporarily banned from the building. Peeves liked mischief though, but knew when to be cautious. Of course, it was hard to stop a ghost doing anything unless you had leverage.

It was no secret throughout the castle that the Ghost Reunion was happening tonight, but nobody wanted to go nonetheless.

Nico slipped out of bed-his watch red 12.16 am. Treading carefully, he put on his cloak and slowly walked to the door of the dormitory.

_Hey!_ A voice said in his mind. He stumbled at this and almost-_almost_ crashed to the floor. _You're not going to leave me behind, are you?_ The voice said again. He spun on his heels, trying to pinpoint the source of the voice. Not a soul in the dorm was awake- _that_ he could feel with his death-soul-sense thingy. Then he turned to Corvus, who looked at him innocently.

_You can talk to me inside my head? _He thought-spoke to the bird. Said animal clacked his beak impatiently. _Okay, fine. Hop on. _He said, and the crow promptly flew onto his shoulder.

_Since when could you talk?_ Nico asked the bird silently.

_Well, would you have believed it?_ Came the reply. Nico sighed and headed out of the dormitory. He was almost there when Corvus spotted a rat **(not Scabbers, I know he's PP) **and swooped down, cawing loudly.

"Corvus!" Nico hissed. "Well _done_," He looked around, expecting the whole dorm to have awakened. Luckily, it was only Ron that blinked his eyes blearily in response.

"Whaa?" He asked, his voice thick with sleep. Nico scowled- he would have to put him to sleep now, by slightly dimming his soul with his own. That usually used a _lot_ of his energy. He concentrated and Ron's small shadow from the moonlight grew until it covered his whole body. He flopped back down, motionless.

_Might've overdone it a bit there but…he'll wake up in about twelve to fourteen hours_, Nico thought. With that, he crept out of the dormitory and down the stairs to the Gryffindor common room. As he slipped out of the portrait-hole, he heard a whisper from behind him.

"Psst, Nico," The voice said. He whipped around and hit someone in the face. Apologizing, he took a closer look at the person. He was quite tall, with kind of long hair and a ruff around his neck. He was translucent-a ghost. Nico already knew of the Gryffindor ghost.

"You're Sir Nicolas de Mimsy-Porpington," He said. Sir Nick looked astonished that Nico knew his name.

"An honour to meet you, Nico." He said grandly. "I suppose you're going to the Reunion?" He asked.

"Yes." Nico replied. He liked Sir Nick, and wanted to call him by his proper title- it was respectful to the dead; you wouldn't call your dearly beloved deceased grandma 'old no-teeth', would you? "Let's go,"

And with that, the strange duo headed down the labyrinth of stairs and corridors to the dungeons.

When they walked down the final corridor, Nico could see glowing green torches lining the walls, and his death-sense was almost exploding.

"How many…" He trailed off as the double wooden doors opened to reveal hundreds, no, _thousands_ of ghosts in a massive dungeon. There was slimy stuff trickling down the stone brick walls, and it was only just bright enough to find the way around.

A deceased orchestra played a fanfare as he walked into the room, and Nico was surprised to see Bertie **(remember, his polter-butler?)** walk (float/glide?) up to him and bow .

"Hey Bertie, long time no see!" He greeted him. The old poltergeist grinned lopsidedly back at him, and then Peeves floated in beside them.

"I'm so glad you came!" He chattered on as Nico wandered around. **(DO NOT REMIND ME OF THAT SONG! GAH!**)

There were ghosts everywhere, and all of them insisted on meeting Nico. He was passed around not unlike a pass-the-parcel present, and met several different spirits that he'd seen in the Underworld. All these ghosts looked thrilled to be recognised; there was Alneric the rebellious, an old gamekeeper who was killed by a mutated flobberworm; Repulsive Ropultus, a transfiguration professor who had half-transfigured himself into a giant slug; and Cassantra Cain, a sweet little girl who had drowned in the lake.

Nico had seen Cassantra (He called her Cassie or Cass) wandering around Elysium, and had even befriended her for a bit before she'd suddenly disappeared without an explanation. She was nine years old physically, but two hundred and fifty years really. Cassie had (had) long platinum blonde hair and a pretty freckled face, with the bluest eyes. Nico knew this because in Elysium, people look exactly like they did in the happiest moment of their lives. She now had silver hair and dark grey eyes.

Nico made a small bouncy ball out of shadows for her and she looked delighted when he presented it to her. It was probably so long since she'd been given a present. Silvery tears of joy sprang up in her eyes and she quickly bounced the ball along the walls, playing with it. Corvus flew along too, eager to stretch his wings.

Nico chuckled and walked on, enjoying the friendly atmosphere. Before he knew it, it was 5.30 am.

He cursed in ancient Greek and hastily explained why he had to leave. His crow flew back to his perch on his shoulder. The ghosts looked very disappointed, but promised to catch up with him later. He shuddered nervously at the thought of his cover being blown by partying ghosts.

He quickly strode out of the dungeons, accompanied by tumultuous applause, and back up to the Gryffindor common room entrance. When he got there, however, his path was blocked by the Golden trio, accompanied by a very reluctant-looking Neville and Dean.

**I AM SO SORRY THAT I ACCIDENTALLY REPOSTED CHAPTER 8! PLEASE FORGIVE ME! I SEEM TO HAVE NAMED BOTH CHAPTERS CHAPTER 9 AND I GOT CONFUSED. SO SORRY SORRY SORRY SORRY! **

**TO MAKE UP FOR IT, I PROMISE TO HAVE AN EXTRA CHAPTER UP BY NEXT WEDNESDAY!Ooh, Cliffie!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**-Supernerdette out.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Order of the Demigods chapter 10.**

**Can I just say again how very sorry I am for the double upload-thing. The real chapter 9 is up and I suggest you go read it before giving me any more crap about it. I know it frustrated you, but it WAS AN ACCIDENT and I am very sorry. Anyway, I promised you this chapter in apology, and here it is. **

Previously…

_When he got there, however, his path was blocked by the Golden trio, accompanied by a very reluctant-looking Neville and Dean._

Neville shuffled nervously.

"Heyy, N-Nico…" He stammered, anxious. Nico cut to the chase and glared at Ron and Hermione; he had a unique gift in the fact that he could glare at two people at the same time. They both flinched and looked at each other like 'WTF?'

"Excuse me," Nico said acidly, "I have to go get my school things from my dorm." However, nobody moved- indeed Hermione moved so she was obstructing the portrait hole.

"What were you doing out of bed this…" She checked the time on a nearby grandfather clock, it was 5.45am, "…early?"

"Couldn't I ask you the same?" He replied. Courteously, Harry stepped in to stop the building argument.

"Well, Neville here told-" Neville nodded frantically at Dean and then Harry. "Fine. Neville, Dean, and I heard a noise and then noticed you were gone."

Nico snorted at their rubbish cover story. He'd been at the Reunion for at least four hours, and they claimed it had taken them that long just to wake up? No. He knew they were tailing him; he wanted to make things interesting for them, so he just nodded.

"Oh, okay." He shrugged, trying to squeeze past Hermione to get through the portrait hole.

"You didn't answer the question, mister." Hermione said. Nico stifled a giggle- Hermione trying to act all nonchalant was better than watching Percy and Thalia argue in the entertainment factor.

"And?" Nico said childishly. The looks he got back were still full of undisguised curiosity. "Okay, _fine_. Would you believe it if I said I was visiting some, ah, friends of my dad?" At this, Hermione squeaked a little. She tried to hide it, but Nico saw Ron and Harry looking at her suspiciously. Nico was half-tempted to bait her further, but knew she knew something the others didn't. or rather, knew she had her suspicions.

He succeeded in pushing past Hermione (Corvus squawked indignantly as he was squished into the wall slightly,) and made a mad dash for the common room. Corvus suggested he stay behind as a distraction and Nico was happy to let his crow take the limelight. He all but threw Corvus at Hermione and he squawked and flapped about, getting in the way and line of sight of the five people outside.

Once he got there, he realised it was deserted as it was only ten to six in the morning. This fact elated him, and he quickly merged into the shadows, thinking of his nice soft bed upstairs in his dorm.

When the others finally trapped Corvus and got into the dorm, all they saw was a few lingering shadows. To further divert their attention, Corvus chose to shadow-travel and find Nico. He didn't need a specific location; oh no. The bird was much more powerful at shadow-travel than even Nico. He could pick a person or even a picture and shadow travel to the location. He could usually even do so with a mental image or a smell.

Dean gasped in shock as Corvus too merged into the shadows.

"Oi, Harry! Did you see that?!" He exclaimed. Oddly enough, Harry was the only one who _wasn't_ looking dumbfounded by the bird's disappearance. "Wonder why McGonagall let him off with that."

"Maybe she didn't," Ron ruminated quietly. "Maybe she's gonna take the bird off him and expel him and-"

"Ron, we all know you don't like Nico, but why…?" Neville asked nervously. Ron gave him an evil glare; Hermione elbowed him in the ribs in response. Groaning slightly, he answered.

"Well, I woke up, and then I saw Nico, and then…then it kind of all goes dark," He said, remembering the sleep he'd had. "I woke up on the floor with a black feather up my nose."

Hermione held back laughter; the mental image of Ron with feathers up his nose was too strong to be contained. She chuckled, but then remembered what Nico said earlier about his father.

"I've _got_ to go visit the library!" She checked her watch, and then grumbled. "It's five minutes until breakfast- I'll have to go after Potions instead!" She quickly hurried off, followed by Dean, Harry, and Ron. Neville, however, remained in the common room.

"Nico?" He asked the empty air. When nothing happened, he repeated himself. "Nico?"

Suddenly his shadow writhed on the floor, and all the other shadows in the area did the same. They solidified, contorting like whips. They formed what looked like a small tornado, and when they slowed down and stopped spinning, Nico was standing there. He looked like a dear caught in the headlights.

"Ah, I thought this might happen," He said, his calm voice not matching the startled expression on his face."

"Nico, what on earth was _that_?" Neville asked.

"Shadow-travel." He answered bluntly, "It's a family thing."

"And who are you? I'm not as dumb as I look, and I don't believe your story!" Neville said, slightly nervous and shocked at his outburst. He was never usually confident in saying that.

"Neville, I-I trust you. But I'll only tell you what you need to know; it's a dangerous world out there." Nico replied tersely. Neville was shocked- Mr I-don't-need-anyone was trusting _him_? The infamous klutz Neville Longbottom?

"Okay. Question number 1, who are you?" He asked. Nico smirked.

"I think you might mean _what_." Neville paled at this.

"Relax; I'm not some kind of monster. I, ah, I'm a demigod," He said, blunt as an eraser. Neville just nodded.

"Ok."

"Really? You believe me?" Nico asked, elated.

"Uh, I can't see why you'd be lying, so yeah. And I've seen a lot of weird things already; it's not too bad. " Neville replied. "I did a bit of Greek Mythology at school, so I only have one question," _The usual_, Nico thought tiredly, "Who?" He asked, referring to his parent.

"I think you know that already," Nico teased back. Neville thought for a bit and then went even paler.

"Downstairs? Like, _way_ downstairs?" Nico nodded. He wasn't sure quite why he was trusting Neville with his ID, but he knew the other boy wouldn't tell a soul. Or any ghosts, though they already knew (obviously.). It could be something to do with how Neville treated him like an equal, and that they both had similar places in the world. Neville never got the glory; that was the Golden Trio. And Nico didn't either; it was always a certain son of Poseidon.

With that gloomy thought in mind, he and Neville set of towards the Great Hall.

**Here you go! And please don't give me any more crap about double-uploading chapter 8/9- it wasn't on purpose and wasn't to attract attention. **

**Great. **

**-ideas please.**

**-Supernerdette out.**


End file.
